Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - dependence

1. Your dependence on something or someone is your need for them in order to succeed or be able to survive. ...the city’s traditional dependence on tourism... = reliance N-UNCOUNT: usu N on n 2. If you talk about drug dependence or alcohol dependence, you are referring to a situation where someone is addicted to drugs or is an alcoholic. = addiction N-UNCOUNT: usu n N 3. You talk about the dependence of one thing on another when the first thing will be affected or determined by the second. ...the dependence of circulation on production. N-UNCOUNT: usu with supp